


Zude's first Christmas

by InTheMomentsBetween



Category: Hit the Floor (TV)
Genre: Actually pretty shamelessly fluffy, Christmas, Fluff, Happy Ending, Light Angst, M/M, This one is fluffy
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-12-25
Updated: 2019-12-25
Packaged: 2021-02-26 06:54:53
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 3,676
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/21959200
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/InTheMomentsBetween/pseuds/InTheMomentsBetween
Summary: Zero doesn't know what to get Jude for Christmas
Relationships: Jude Kinkade/Zero | Gideon
Comments: 15
Kudos: 144
Collections: Zude





	Zude's first Christmas

**Author's Note:**

  * For [Duraffinity](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Duraffinity/gifts).



> I won't lie, this is a 3500ish words of total fluff. Self-indulgent fluff. Because it's Christmas and we all deserve nice things. 
> 
> This is my first Christmas fic. 
> 
> I hope you enjoy it. If you do, remember comments make great Christmas presents. I'm on Tumblr at IntheMomentsBetween. 
> 
> Merry Christmas and Happy Holidays to all!

Zero blew out a frustrated breath, running his hands through his already abused hair as he inspected the collection of Rolexes in front of him. They all looked nice. They should, considering how much they cost. They also, all looked the same. He picked up a shiny, black one.

“What do you think of this one?” He said, holding it up to his shopping companion.

Lionel let out an exasperated sigh. “The same thing that I thought about the last 5 you showed me – Jude already has a watch.” Dismissing him, she turned back to re-applying her lipstick.

Zero put down the watch and gave an apologetic look to the hopeful salesclerk.

Grabbing Lionel’s elbow, he marched her out of the store. Stopping just outside the store, Zero growled, yes growled, in frustration. 

Lionel raised an eyebrow at him “What is the matter with you? Why are you making this into such a big deal?”

Zero just stared at her, his mouth open.

“What do you mean ‘why am I making a big deal of this’?!? This is Jude’s and my first Christmas together.”

Lionel looked confused “So?”

“So?!? I’ve put him through so much this year, I need to find something perfect to show him how much I love him.”

“Jude knows that you love him Zero. Hell, you kissed him on national TV. I think everyone knows that you love him.”

“You don’t get it, Lionel. Jude and I have never really done Christmas. His mom was too busy with her country clubs and you know his dirtbag father. I never had a family to celebrate with after my mom left us. This needs to be perfect.”

Lionel’s eyes softened as she watched Zero pace back and forth. He was so gone over Jude. A year ago, she never would have thought she’d be standing here watching L. A’s resident playboy losing his shit over getting his boyfriend a Christmas present. Hell, she would never have thought she’d be his wingman for it. Somewhere along the rocky road of Jude and Zero’s romance, she’d become sort-of friends with the bleach blond jerk. He was still a jerk, but he was Jude’s jerk, so that made him family.

And right now, her family was shaking his head, muttering to himself about diamond cufflinks. Oh no, that line of thinking needed to be nipped in the bud right now.

“Zero..”

Not hearing Lionel, Zero just kept up his muttering and pacing.

“Zero!!”

Zero blinked up a Lionel, having forgotten she was there. “Wh-, What?”

“Jude doesn’t want diamond cufflinks. He doesn’t want a Rolex.”

“Well, what does he want then? What about another car?”

Lionel shook her head fondly. “Oh Zero, you already bought him a car, you bought him a house, you kissed him in front of the world, I think you’ve got the bases covered on the big gesture. All Jude wants is you.”

“Well, I can’t just wrap myself up in a bow and put myself under the tree.” Zero thought about that. “Actually --- “

“I don’t want to hear it.” Lionel put a manicured finger to Zero’s lips, cutting him off before he could finish that train of thought. It was bad enough that she had to hear about their sex life from Jude, she was not going to start hearing about it from Zero. She had a feeling he would be a lot more graphic than Jude, who still blushed shyly when he talked about Zero. It was adorable.

“Let’s go get a drink and think about this.”

Zero smiled knowingly, trust Lionel to be able to work in a drink into an afternoon shopping trip. They’d been shopping all day and hadn’t made any progress. A drink, or two knowing Lionel, might help him find some inspiration. 

An hour later, they were both somewhat tipsy and Zero was in sharing mood, It seemed Lionel was going to hear about their relationship from Zero after all.

“Jude’s the best thing that ever happened to me.”

“Yes, yes he is Zero.” Zero had changed a lot since things had settled down with Jude. Knowing that Jude loved him, he no longer felt the need to prove himself, prove that he wasn’t the zero his foster parents had called him. 

“I am so lucky that he took me back.” Zero’s words were slightly slurred. Dammit! He knew better than to try to match Lionel drink for drink.

“Yes, yes, you are.” Zero narrowed his eyes at Lionel, she smirked back at him.

“I was such a jerk to him, Lionel, even after we got together.”

“Yes, yes, you were.”

“Stop agreeing with me!!”

Lionel just laughed. Sure, she and Zero may be sort-of friends now, but that didn’t mean she had completely forgiven him for how he’d treated Jude. Plus, a drunk Zero was an easy mark.

“It took me so long to get my shit together. He says it doesn’t matter now but I hate that he has those memories of us, of me.”

Lionel was silent for a moment and then her eyes lit up and she gave Zero a rare genuine smile.

“So, make new ones.”

“New what?” Zero was baffled, not following Lionel’s thinking.

“Memories, asshat. Make new memories.” And leaning into Zero, Lionel whispered her idea for what Zero could give Jude for Christmas.

Jude sat on the bench in the locker room, reading through his emails. He didn’t know why Zero asked him to meet him here. He was pretty sure Zero hadn’t even had practice today. The team had a week off to visit their families for Christmas. Jude gave a small smile. At least he wouldn’t be alone this Christmas. For the first time in as long as he could remember, Jude would be spending Christmas with people he loved. Sure, he, Lionel and Zero weren’t a conventional family, but there was no one that Jude would rather spend the holiday with.

Jude looked around the locker room. The room held such bittersweet memories for him. It was the place where he’d confessed his feelings to Zero, telling him he wanted a relationship with him. He remembered the vulnerable look on Zero’s face. Jude heart had leapt when Zero had told him his real name, thinking that maybe they had a chance. Then Zero never called, didn’t text. He went back to being his old cocky, flirty self. Realizing that Zero wasn’t ready to admit his feelings, or even worse, that he didn’t actually have any, Jude distanced himself. Those months had been awful. Jude sighed, he knew that things with Zero were good now, but he couldn’t help the twinge of sadness he felt as he looked over at Zero’s locker.

The sound of the door opening broke Jude out of his maudlin thoughts. He looked up to see Zero walking towards him. By coincidence, he was wearing the same blue sweater that he’d worn the first time he broke Jude’s heart. Jude took a deep breath, trying to put the past behind him.

Zero walked up to where Jude was sitting and looked down at him, a small smile gracing his handsome face. Jude’s breath caught, as it always did when Zero gave him the secret smile reserved only for Jude. Perhaps that’s why he was so confused by Zero’s greeting.

“Hi, I’m Gideon.”

Jude stood up, looking at the shorter man quizzically. “What?”

“Gideon, that’s my name.”

“I know that, Zero. In fact, this is where you told me.”

Zero just kept smiling at him. “You told me that I don’t do relationships with guys. But I do. You know how I know? Because I want one with you.”

“Zero, what are you talking about? We are in a relationship…”

“So, if it’s okay with you, I’d like to take you out sometime, on a date, to a public place and have you tell me who you really are.”

Jude’s heart started to beat faster as he recognized the words that he’d said to Zero is this exact spot. He blushed, meeting Zero’s eyes “I’d – “ he swallowed “I’d like that very much.”

Zero’s face lit up as he stepped into Jude’s space, placing his hands on either side of Jude’s face, pulling him into a deep kiss. As Zero deepened the kiss, Jude felt the memory of his past heartbreak fade away.

“I love you, Jude.”

I love you too, Gideon.”

********

“Where are we going, Zero?” Jude asked impatiently as Zero drove them out of the arena parking lot. He had a lot to do and didn’t have time for any of Zero’s dramatics.

Zero just gave him a zen look – _and since when was Zero zen_?.

“You’ll see.”

Jude ran his hand through his hair, making it stand up in every direction. Zero thought he looked adorable. “Listen, Zero, I’ve got a million things to do, the Board is up my ass, Jelena is on the warpath against Lionel, Oscar keeps trying to contact me and, on top of that, reporters are hounding me wanting to know what we are doing for Christmas!!!”

“Jude”. Zero said his name in that way he had that said that Jude was wound up tight, even for him.

“You need to relax, man. You work too much. The world isn’t going to fall apart if you spend an afternoon with your boyfriend.”

Irritated though he was, Jude felt a small thrill in his stomach. He didn’t think he’d ever get tired of hearing Zero call himself Jude’s boyfriend. It had taken them so long to get here, to where they were solid. A part of him still couldn’t forget the time that Zero had said that he regretted it, right after the masseuse took that picture of him when he was trying to relax. It turned out that Zero regretted letting the world in on their relationship, but part of Jude always wondered whether Zero wanted his old life back.

“Fine.". Jude huffed as he sat back in his seat. He continued to fire off emails and ignore Zero until he felt the car stop. He shot Zero a confused look when he saw where they were.

“Zero, what are we doing here?”

Jude couldn’t understand why Zero would bring him back to the same spa where he’d broken Jude’s heart the second time. It was here that Zero had given voice to Jude’s biggest fear, that someone he loved, didn’t love him back, regretted being with him.

“Com’on Jude, let’s just go inside.”

Jude stayed where he was. He absolutely did not want to go back and relive that horrible day.

“Please, Jude, trust me.”

Jude didn’t stand a chance against the raw look on Zero’s face. Whatever this was, it meant a lot to Zero.

The receptionist led them to the same room as last time, although there was only one massage table and no masseuse this time. Jude was beyond confused at this point and haunted by the memory of the pain he’d felt as Zero had stormed out of the room, running away from Jude, from them.

“Lie down, Jude”

“There’s only one table, Zero.”

“I know, just take off your clothes and lie down.”

Jude raised an eyebrow at Zero. The last thing he felt like doing was have sex in this place.

Zero caught the look and smiled. “It’s just business, Jude.”

Jude barked out a laugh, Zero was incorrigible. It haD been Zero in his underwear the first time he’d said that to Jude.

Jude undressed and lay down on the table, wondering what Zero was up to. His brain short circuited as Zero began to massage warm oil into the tight muscles of his back. Zero didn’t say anything as he worked the kinks out of Jude’s shoulders, his magic fingers digging deep into the stubborn knots. Jude slowly relaxed under his boyfriend’s less-than-gentle but no-less-wonderful ministrations. He loved having Zero’s hands on him, no matter what the circumstances, but knowing that Zero was doing this just for him, made Jude feel even more amazing. _It doesn’t really get better than this, he thought dreamily._

Except that it did, when Zero started talking.

“Do you know what the best day of my life was?” Zero asked, not waiting for an answer. “It was the day you kissed me in the limo. My head was so far up my ass at that time, worrying about Jelena, worrying about being Captain, all stupid stuff. And then you kissed me, and all I could see was you.”

Jude made a move to turn over but Zero’s strong hands just pushed him back down and worked their way along his lower back.

“God, I was so afraid. Not like you thought, not about people finding out that I’m, well, whatever I am, but that if you got close, you wouldn’t like me anymore. You were my first real friend, Jude, and I didn’t want to lose that. You are too observant, and I knew if I let you in, you’d see all of me and realize that I wasn’t worth your time after all. But I couldn’t stay away after that. I couldn’t lose you to Danny, the photographer’s assistant, or to he who shall not be named.”

Jude snorted as Zero refused to say Lucas’ name. The guy was a douche, true, but he had inadvertently brought Jude and Zero together, so Jude couldn’t hate him. That’s okay, Zero hated the other agent enough for both of them. Jude secretly loved how jealous Zero would get at any mention of Lucas.

“Then I took you for granted. I thought that what I was giving you was enough. It was already more than I had given to anyone else. But you were right, I was holding back. Even after I kissed you on the court, I held back. I didn’t want to let the world in, to see how much I loved you. I thought if you knew how much I loved you, it would scare you away. Instead, I hurt you by lashing out against you, against our relationship.

Jude sat up on the table facing Zero. Zero looked into Jude’s eyes

“And that is what I regret, not that the world knew about us, not being with you, but that I hurt you. I hate that my own demons made you think you weren’t the most important thing in the world to me. “

Jude brushed away the silent tears from Zero’s cheeks, once again amazed at how vulnerable Zero would let himself be with him. The last time he’d lain on this table, he’d felt like his heart was being ripped open. Now his heart felt like it would burst from his chest with love for Zero. For this amazing, broken man whose jagged edges fit perfectly with his own.

“Shh, it’s okay, Gideon.” Jude said, kissing Zero lightly on the lips. “I regret nothing.”

And he didn’t.

*********

By the time Zero asked Jude to meet him in the parking lot, Jude had figured out what Zero was doing. He was trying to replace the bad memories from their early days with new ones. It was, by far, the most romantic thing anyone had ever done for Jude. If he hadn’t already been completely in love with Zero, this would have done the trick.

Jude walked out to the parking lot to see Zero standing beside his Porsche, wearing the same jacket and sneakers that he’d worn the first time they’d said I love you to each other in this very spot. Things had ended badly that time, with Zero unable to give Jude what he needed, and Jude not willing to settle for anything less. They’d both been idiots. They’d both walked away brokenhearted.

Now he watched as Zero paced nervously, taking his hands in and out of his pockets. God, he was adorable, and he was all Jude’s. 

“Hello, Gideon.”

Zero looked up and, if it was possible, looked even more nervous now that Jude was there. Jude knew that Zero was bad with feelings and he’d been making himself vulnerable a lot over the past few days.

“H-, Hi Jude.” Jude’s eyebrows shot up over Zero’s uncharacteristic stutter. The silence between them stretched as Zero seemed unable to form any more words.

“You okay, Zero?”

“Um, yeah, fine, Jude, and you?”

Jude swallowed a laugh at his partner’s obvious discomfort. “I’m good, Zero, really good.”

At that, Zero took a deep breath and seemed to pull himself together, although he couldn’t seem to bring himself to meet Jude’s eyes.

“Great, great, that’s, um, that’s great Jude. I’m glad you are good.” Zero babbled.

Jude did not remember a single occasion where the always cool Zero had babbled, well except in bed, where the blond could get downright chatty.

Jude started to get nervous when Zero just stood there mutely.

“So, ah, you said you wanted to talk to me?” Jude prompted as Zero appeared to have lost the ability to vocalize.

“I love you!” Zero blurted out, much too loud considering Jude was only standing two feet away. Zero blushed and dropped his gaze, groaning at himself.

“I love you too.” Jude answered quickly, his voice thick with emotion. Whatever was going on here, obviously meant a lot to Zero.

“That’s great, yeah, really good –” Zero clamped a hand over his mouth before he could babble any more. Getting himself under control, he finally looked into Jude’s eyes. Jude eyes looked back at him, filled with love, affection and maybe, just maybe a little bit of amusement at Zero’s expense. In his defense, Jude was usually the awkward one.

“God, I’m making a mess of this.” Zero smiled ruefully.

“You know you can say anything to me, Gideon.” Jude took a step closer, reaching to pull Zero into his arms. Surprised, he watched Zero take a step back, his hand up to block Jude’s approach.

“No, let me say this, please.”

Jude nodded his head, giving Zero the go-ahead.

“My life changed when I met you. You were my agent, then my best friend, my lover and now you are the love of my life. I can’t believe how lucky I am that you love me, that you chose me. We’ve been through so much together, and it’s still just you and me -- “

“And Lionel.”

Jude smiled.

“And Lionel” Zero agreed

“I’ve let you down so many times on the way to getting here.” Zero put his hand up to stop Jude from interrupting. “I have. But I promise, I will do my best to not let you down again. I want to be there for you in every way. It may not be a normal person like you wanted, but I swear, no one will ever love you more than I do.”

Zero stepped into Jude’s space, placing his hands on Jude’s face as he always did when he wanted to convey what he was feeling. He looked deep into Jude’s eyes. 

“You are the single greatest thing to ever happen to me, Jude Kinkade. And if you are willing, um, that is if you want to, um, it would make me the happiest man alive if, um, ah –”

Jude’s could feel his pulse pounding as Zero faltered again.

“What, what is it, Gideon?”

Zero looked at Jude, speechless with nerves. God, he loved him so much.

Instead of speaking, Zero put his hands on Jude’s broad-shoulders and turned him to face the billboard shining down on their parking spot.

Jude’s mouth dropped, Instead of a seeing a smirking Zero, holding a basketball in front of him, there was a giant picture of Zero kissing Jude on the basketball court. Written underneath in big letters, was

“WILL YOU MARRY ME, STUPID?”

Jude turned to see that Zero had gotten down on one knee and was holding out small box with a simple gold band in it. When it seemed like Zero was going to just kneel there without saying anything, Jude prompted, giving a small smile.

“Use your words, Gideon.”

Zero’s voice was quiet when he finally spoke “Jude, I promise that I will do everything I can to give you only happy memories from now on. I promise to never forget how much I love you in this moment. Please, make me the happiest man in the world. Will you marry me, Jude Kinkade?”

“Yes, yes, I’ll marry you, Gideon.” Jude pulled Zero up into a deep kiss, trying to convey just how deliriously happy he was to know that Zero wanted to be his husband, to spend the rest of their lives together.

The two kissed for several more minutes before they finally pulled apart, still smiling at each other. Jude took Zero’s hand to lead him back to their car.

“I’m surprised." Jude said

“Surprised that I asked you to marry me?”

“No, although, yes, actually that was a wonderful surprise. But no, I’m surprised by how you asked me. This was pretty discreet for you. Normally, you are the king of the grand gesture. Don’t get me wrong, this was absolutely beautiful, and I wouldn’t change anything, but –”

Jude stopped at the guilty look on Zero’s face.

“Zero?”

Zero grinned cockily, comfortable again now that Jude had said yes.

“Zero, what did you do?”

Jude caught Zero’s eyes flick to somewhere behind him.

“Oh no...” Jude turned slowly squeezing his eyes tightly shut. When he opened them, he saw what Zero had been smiling about.

Every single billboard, including the giant one above the arena that could be seen from the highway, had the “WILL YOU MARRY ME, STUPID?” poster on them.

Jude turned and narrowed his eyes at Zero, who just smiled shamelessly back at him, showing no remorse.

Jude shook his head affectionately, “You just couldn’t help yourself, could you?”

Zero laughed joyously. “Nope”

Jude pulled the laughing idiot into his arms. “You’re the single greatest thing to ever happen to me too, Gideon.”

“Merry Christmas, Jude”

Merry Christmas, Gideon”

**Author's Note:**

> This fic is a Christmas present to Duraffinity who was my first fanfiction friend and who always has good ideas.


End file.
